Cost of living comparison
compared to
Bern vs. Brussels Cost of Living Summary
Bern is 58.9% more expensive than Brussels.
- Restaurants
-
pay 38.8% more in Bern
- Groceries
-
pay 41.2% more in Bern
- Transportation
-
pay 56.9% more in Bern
- Housing
-
pay 33.4% more in Bern
- Childcare
-
pay 2.5 times more in Bern
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 45.3% more in Bern
- Clothing
-
pay 49.6% more in Bern
The cost of childcare, transportation, clothing, entertainment and sports, groceries, and restaurants in Bern are more expensive than in Brussels. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Bern.
Bern vs. Brussels Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Bern instead of Brussels, you would:
pay 38.8% more for restaurants
|
Brussels
|
Bern
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$29.20
€25.18
|
$29.22
CHF23.46
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$14.37
€12.39
|
$18.77
CHF15.07
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
€2.76
|
$5.16
CHF4.14
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$3.03
€2.61
|
$4.93
CHF3.96
|
|
Brussels vs. Bern - Cost of restaurants
pay 41.2% more for groceries
|
Brussels
|
Bern
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.86
€2.47
|
$3.73
CHF2.99
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.00
€6.90
|
$14.58
CHF11.70
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$5.87
€5.06
|
$8.60
CHF6.90
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.99
€4.31
|
$7.49
CHF6.01
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.32
€5.45
|
$15.45
CHF12.40
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.43
€1.23
|
$1.72
CHF1.38
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.17
€1.01
|
$1.03
CHF0.83
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.21
€1.04
|
$1.44
CHF1.15
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.73
€1.49
|
$3.39
CHF2.72
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.21
€1.04
|
$1.04
CHF0.84
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.17
€1.01
|
$1.05
CHF0.84
|
|
Brussels vs. Bern - Cost of groceries
pay 56.9% more for transportation
|
Brussels
|
Bern
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.25
€6.25
|
$8.42
CHF6.76
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$64.24
€55.39
|
$100.10
CHF80.36
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,037.93
€30,214.15
|
$41,041.86
CHF32,947.46
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$27.33
€23.57
|
$65.19
CHF52.33
|
|
Brussels vs. Bern - Cost of transportation
pay 33.4% more for housing
|
Brussels
|
Bern
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$56.00
€48.29
|
$63.82
CHF51.23
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,315.56
€1,134.44
|
$1,948.71
CHF1,564.38
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,101.57
€949.91
|
$1,636.67
CHF1,313.88
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$190.72
€164.47
|
$234.53
CHF188.28
|
|
Brussels vs. Bern - Cost of housing
pay 2.5 times more for childcare
|
Brussels
|
Bern
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,090.35
€940.24
|
$3,420.16
CHF2,745.62
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$22,587.78
€19,478.06
|
$40,875.03
CHF32,813.53
|
|
Brussels vs. Bern - Cost of childcare
pay 45.3% more for entertainment and sports
|
Brussels
|
Bern
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.89
€5.94
|
$9.38
CHF7.53
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.78
€4.12
|
$6.19
CHF4.97
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.43
€11.58
|
$11.76
CHF9.44
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$40.10
€34.58
|
$81.65
CHF65.54
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.23
€14.00
|
$27.53
CHF22.10
|
|
Brussels vs. Bern - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 49.6% more for clothing
|
Brussels
|
Bern
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$99.27
€85.60
|
$155.91
CHF125.16
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$46.81
€40.37
|
$70.91
CHF56.92
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$112.78
€97.25
|
$167.05
CHF134.10
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$149.88
€129.25
|
$212.36
CHF170.48
|
|
Brussels vs. Bern - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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